The present invention relates to a Simple, portable, one person load mover and more specifically to a load mover which permits a single person to move loads such as heavy furniture or appliances up and down inclines.
The transport of heavy household furniture or appliances up and down inclines is normally accomplished by two or more persons who simply pick up and carry the load in question. The size and the nature of such items, the frequent complexity of inclines, and the fact that persons attempting to move such loads are often inexperienced at such work has resulted in numerous injuries (hernias, back injuries, crushed toes, etc.) and much damage (gouged walls and stairwells and damaged appliances or furniture). Organizations or firms with personnel experienced in currying such loads must usually commit two or more people to this task, thus incurring greater expense than if one person were able to accomplish it alone. The advantages of the device for which the patent is sought are that it is cheap to manufacture and simple to use, and that it will reduce the cost and potential for damage and injury associated with this task.
The most obvious way to use a means with mechanical advantage (or force magnification) to draw in a flexible line and thereby pull a load up an incline would be to fasten a winching device at the top of the incline, attach the free end of the flexible line to the load and commence winching.
A major problem with this approach is that the location of the winching device at the top of the incline interferes with movement of the load onto the upper landing. The flexible line cannot be disconnected unless the operator can pull the load up the remaining portion of the incline manually and lift it over the device.
A second problem is the fact that the flexible line used to draw the load may slide over the surfaces of the incline and gouge or otherwise damage any areas which it contacts.
In a situation where loads are repeatedly moved up or down a specific incline, it might be possible to bolt, clamp or otherwise attach a winching device to an appropriate point above and behind the landing and thereby obviate the aforesaid problems. However, such an approach would be application-specific and would not be suitable for general use.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention that it be versatile enough to be applied on any kind of incline, including a flight of stairs, a ladder, or a vehicle loading ramp.
Another object of the present invention is that it can continue application of the motive force until the center of gravity of the load is above the elevation of the top of the incline. The load can then be rotated to dispose the center of gravity of the load over the horizontal surface at the top of the incline so that the flexible line can be disconnected from the fixed point and the invention disengaged from the load.
Another object of the invention is that the motive force can be applied in a continuous (as opposed to stepwise) manner resulting in smooth and expeditious load traversal.
A further object of the invention is that the flexible line by which the device applies its motive force may contact but will not slide over any portion of the incline or upper landings or floors on which the load moves.
Still another object of the invention is that it is portable for a person of average strength and can be easily curried and employed in a variety of locations to move many kinds of loads.
These and other objects and advantages of the invention will be readily apparent to one familiar with the difficulties of moving heavy furniture and and appliances and particularly upon reading the following detailed description and inspecting the accompanying drawings.